The Norwegian duo of Darkthrone will release "Arctic Thunder" on October 14th via Peaceville Records. While the infamous Fenriz has been doing interviews about the release, it recently came out that he became a city council member... against his will!

Despite campaigning on a "please don't elect me" platform (check out the official campaign poster below), Fenriz was voted in anyway. He discussed his unwanted political post in an interview with Clvrynt.com, which also extensively discusses "Arctic Thunder." Excerpts follow.

Clrvynt: What is life like in Kolbotn these days?

Fenriz: Nowadays, I’m the neighbor that really takes care of the lawn. But now I’m in the local papers because I got voted in as a politician — involuntarily, I might add. So, I’ve got some support, I guess. But Kolbotn is a tiny place, maybe 9,000 people.

Clrvynt: You got voted in involuntarily? Couldn’t you just decline the position? More...

Norwegian duo, Darkthrone, has announced the new album "Arctic Thunder," to be released on October 14th via Peaceville. "Arctic Thunder" marks the band's first new studio material since 2013's triumphant "The Underground Resistance," its most successful release in recent years.

An eclectic mix of free-spirited '80s fueled blackened heavy metal, all executed in Darkthrone's trademark raw and organic style, "Arctic Thunder" was recorded and produced by the band themselves, with the sessions conducted at Darkthrone's old rehearsal unit, "The Bomb Shelter," which was originally used during 1988-1990. Mastering is once again handled by Jack Control at Enormous Door.

With themes based around hate, contempt, and the inner mind and soul, and with the notable presence of Nocturno Culto on vocal duties across all songs for the first time in recent years, "Arctic Thunder" retains a grim atmosphere throughout the album's eight tracks.

Stay tuned for more information on Darkthrone and Arctic Thunder, out this fall on Peaceville.

Norwegian black metal institution Urgehal has released a second new track from forthcoming swansong album "Aeons in Sodom."

The track, titled "The Iron Children," features lead vocals from Darkthrone's inimitable Nocturno Culto, and is streaming below. "Aeons in Sodom" will be released worldwide on February 12th.

In honor of deceased band leader Trondr Nefas, Urgehal assembled his final material into one last full-length release. Nefas' masochistic screams are too unique to replace, so the band enlisted the services of venerable Scandinavian metal scene icons to contribute vocals on each track, including Nocturno Culto (Darkthrone), Nattefrost (Carpathian Forest), Nag (Tsjuder), Niklas Kvarforth (Shining), Hoest (Taake), Mannevond (Koldbrann) and more.

The publishing wing of Svart Records that kicked off this month with the Isten Fanzine compilation continues in April with "Magic As A Golden Mean," which is a selection of mixed-media artworks by Romanian artist Costin Chioreanu.

The hardcover book will be launched at Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, Holland in April 2015.

Costin has been creating album artwork for over a decade. He started out illustrating his band’s demos, but would soon be influenced by circumstances in post-Communist Romania, too.

In the mid-1990s, metal fans in Bucharest were lucky to find bootleg cassettes with badly photocopied covers. Undeterred, Costin simply made his own using Heavy Metal Magazine, the country’s sole heavy music publication, as a reference.

Today, he has emerged as one of the most talented artists in the realm of avant-metal and dark psychedelica, producing work for the likes of Darkthrone, Ulver, At The Gates, Triptykon, and Opeth. Whether the images he conjures are disturbing, provocative, or enchanting, they consistently show great finesse, sensitivity and depth. More...

Peaceville Records is set to delve into the world of podcasts with a series of special shows courtesy of some of our esteemed artists from the label's roster. Peaceville comments:

"Who better to commence proceedings than a man who needs no introduction but will be given one anyway. It's the seemingly bottomless pit of musical knowledge that is Darkthrone's Fenriz, with his very own selection of influential tracks from the darker side of the metal universe, who first takes centre stage."

Check out the new podcast featuring Fenriz in the SoundCloud player available below.

On May 12th, Peaceville Records will release "Black Death and Beyond," a special collector’s box-set featuring an in-depth book containing extensive accounts of Darkthrone's history & philosophy from both Gylve ‘Fenris’ Nagell & Ted ‘Nocturno Culto’ Skjellum, as well as additional recollections from bass player Dag Nilsen.

“I never quit my day job; one of the reasons being that I can listen to music on headphones there all the time. To the extent that I rarely listen to music at home anymore, and if I do it's like I can't hear it PROPERLY. At work with headphones is where the details reveal themselves and also which songs I can and can't use in compilations or dj'ing appear quite clearly.

"Every time I get/buy a cassette or vinyl I have to transfer them to wav files via a computer programme, then I write a little note to accompany the final burnt disc. But the note first swings by my workplace where I can rate the various songs with a clever underlining-system called THE FENRIZOLATOR. And so passes the days.

"Then came the idea to do a Darkthrone book and with it a vast box set. There was talk about 3 compilation discs, one with Death, one with Black and one with our other styles. So be it. But this time I took it upon myself do it PROPERLY. And to do that....well, I had to face my own rating system. Because I also use the F-OLATOR on regular CD's, it took 3 whole days to rate all of our 16 full length albums. Certain discoveries were made, like the song I think is worst by Darkthrone is HANS SISTE VINTER (Scoring only 12 out of 60 points) and also that The Cult Is Alive is probably our best album – at least it's the one with the highest grades consistently.

"But I digress. AGGRESSIVE DIGRESSOR!!! Lists were made, and I truly tried to be as honest and fair as possible, Ted was initially going to do this but I think he suddenly saw how monumental a task it would be, and ended up with - well, what you hold in your hands right now. My 'BEST OF' trying to follow both my biased ratings, crystal logic and also personal favours and my fave Ted songs." More...

After streaming a six and a half minute version of the song online, Norwegian act Darkthrone has teamed up with Pitchfork.com for the full version of "Leave No Cross Unturned." Check out the full song right here.

"Leave No Cross Unturned" comes off the band's new album "The Underground Resistance," due out February 26th, 2013 via Peaceville Records. Pre-orders are available online now at this location, and the following press release was issued about the album:

"The Underground Resistance is Darkthrone's latest venture through the metal cosmos, and first new album since the 2010 opus Circle the Wagons. The Underground Resistance contains Darkthrone's trademark masterful riffing in a broad range of styles, effortlessly bounding through the annals of classic metal, taking in thrash, speed and black metal, and not forgetting a dose of punk. All in all a ferocious and dynamic set of tracks drenched in Fenriz's and Nocturno's rich and diverse tastes in all things metal, primarily those rooted firmly in the spirit of the 80's. Six tracks long, and each one an epic in itself, this is undoubtedly Darkthrone's strongest outing of late."

Norwegian legends Darkthrone are streaming the new track "Leave No Cross Unturned." The song appears on the band's upcoming Peaceville Records release "The Underground Resistance," which is scheduled to drop on February 25, 2013.

Norwegian act Darkthrone has completed work on its latest album "The Underground Resistance," which is set for release on Peaceville Records on February 26th. The following press release was issued about the album:

"The Underground Resistance is Darkthrone's latest venture through the metal cosmos, and first new album since the 2010 opus Circle the Wagons. The Underground Resistance contains Darkthrone's trademark masterful riffing in a broad range of styles, effortlessly bounding through the annals of classic metal, taking in thrash, speed and black metal, and not forgetting a dose of punk. All in all a ferocious and dynamic set of tracks drenched in Fenriz's and Nocturno's rich and diverse tastes in all things metal, primarily those rooted firmly in the spirit of the 80's. Six tracks long, and each one an epic in itself, this is undoubtedly Darkthrone's strongest outing of late.

"The Underground Resistance was written and recorded spring 2010 to summer 2012 at Necrohell 2 studios by the band themselves. The album was mastered by Jack Control at Enormous Door in Texas. Cover artwork also comes courtesy of the iconic and celebrated artist Jim Fitzpatrick."

Commented Fenriz, "Three songs each, Ted's are flown from the universe of metal with his strongest voice ever so far. Songs of mine are torn from the wombs of the riders of rohan of metal, safely cradled in 1985 style." More...

It’s February once again and MetalUnderground.com has decided to bring back Black Metal History Month, (see what we did there?). This month MetalUnderground and in particular Sunday Old School, will be looking at some of the biggest and most important bands in the history of black metal. If some of your favourite black metal bands don’t get featured this month, such as Norwegian titans Immortal or Emperor, chances are it’s because we’ve already covered them. Speaking of Norwegian black metal, it only seems right that we kick the month off by looking at just such a band, and who better to examine than Kolbotn’s own, Darkthrone?

As previously mentioned, the band formed in Kolbotn, a suburb of the Norwegian capital city, Oslo, in 1986 by drummer Gylve Nagell, along with guitarist Ivar Enger and bass player Dag Nilsen. They originally went under the moniker, Black Death and performed a more death metal orientated brand of music, before they changed their name to Darkthrone the next year and were joined by a second guitarist in 1988 named Dag Nilsen, who would leave the same year. Following the recruitment of Ted Skjellum, the group would release four demo tapes before landing a record deal with Peaceville Records. They were helped in their endeavour to record their debut album by members of Entombed and Nihilist, since Darkthrone had a very small recording budget. It was on this first album, "Soulside Journey" that traces of black metal began to show in their music. They then took this a step further, adorning corpse paint and adopting pseudonyms, much like Venom before them.

Their transition to black metal was completed with their second album, "A Blaze In The Northern Sky," which despite causing problems between Darkthrone and Peaceville and seeing Dag Nilsen depart soon afterwards, was eventually released in February 1992 and has since become one of the most acclaimed black metal albums of all time. A third album, "Under a Funeral Moon" was recorded merely four months after the release of "A Blaze In The Northern Sky" and saw the band completely discard their death metal roots in favour of what Nagell, now known as Fenriz, called, "100% pure black metal." Once again, the album would be soon as a major landmark for the black metal genre and was adored by fans. Enger departed soon afterwards however and ever since then, Darkthrone has consisted of Fenriz and Ted "Nocturno Culto" Skjellum. More...

MetalReview.com has wrapped up its "90's Essentials" interview series by chatting up Fenriz of Darkthrone about the "A Blaze in the Northern Sky" album and more. You can check out an excerpt from the interview below.

MetalReview: So, the MetalReview staff has spent the last half a year bickering and voting about the absolute best metal albums of the 1990s, and, quite surprisingly, we managed to reach a consensus of a list that encloses the 100 Most Essential LPs of the decade. A Darkthrone album belongs to such a list by default and we decided to go with A Blaze in the Northern Sky. What are your initial impressions of this nomination?

Fenriz: I feel frisky and fetched by it! It sounds as fresh as necro can be! BUT the reason I have to be stern about A Blaze in The Northern Sky is that it fooled people and people got fooled by it. And I'm talking about the press, fans and players in the scene. The packaging, sound and production made everyone think it was a pure black metal album, and then sort of widened the scope for what COULD be black metal. It was not intended that way. After we'd quit the old style of very technical death metal finally, we only had months before studio time, already booked for the supposed Goatlord album, and little time to make a full PRIMITIVE black metal album, so the 3 pure black metal songs on it are "Kathaarian Life Code," "In The Shadow Of the Horns" (complete with Motörhead mid paced part and lots of Celtic Frost vibes as usual) and "Where Cold Winds Blow." The rest was really a lot of death metal with some black metal parts – but everyone seemed to not think twice about THAT...

MetalReview: As a guy who has gazillion albums under his belt, how do you nowadays feel about A Blaze in the Northern Sky, one of your earliest creations, and do you think it’s worth the crazy adoration it’s been subjected to? Also, would you personally have chosen some other Darkthrone full-length from the 90s, considering the context? More...

A number of documentaries pertaining to specific scenes and genres in heavy metal, most notably grindcore and black metal, have been posted online via YouTube and are now available to watch, uninterupted, from start to finish. "Grindcore - 85 Minutes Of Brutal Heavy Metal," features segments on a number of bands signed to Earache Records during the 1990's, including Napalm Death, Morbid Angel, Godflesh, Carcass and Paradise Lost amongst others and includes live footage, interviews and music videos.

Meanwhile, two different documentaries on black metal have also been posted online, including "Until The Light Takes Us," which examines the black metal scene in Norway during the 1990's and looks at such bands as Burzum and Darkthrone, complete with interviews with Gylve "Fenriz" Nagell and the then incarcerated Varg Vikernes. Alternatively, there is "Murder Music: A History of Black Metal," a British documentary hosted by Contraband Candy host René Ackermann that gives a much broader insight into black metal, tracing the genre's roots from the theatrics of Black Widow to the Christian black metal scene, and everything in between. You can view all of these films below. More...

Peaceville Records is re-releasing new editions of previous albums from Norwegian black metal act Darkthrone, from the recently acquired Moonfog Productions catalog titles. To celebrate the release of the next two titles to be reissued, "Goatlord" and "Ravishing Grimness," the band and label are calling on fans to create new artwork for the albums. Darkthrone guitarist/vocalist, Nocturno Culto, issued the following statement:

"We are pleased to announce that Peaceville/Snapper has bought the entire Moonfog catalogue of Darkthrone, that is seven albums in total. The plan is to release these albums within the next year, with new distro network and fresh thinking around these albums. There are two albums that will have entirely new cover artwork: Ravishing Grimness and Goatlord. This is a decision that is made by Fenriz and myself. And the idea now is that we are making a competition out of this. If you now feel the urge to contribute to this competition, you are most welcome to send in your art to Peaceville. Only serious contributions will reach Fenriz and me to decide upon. Thank you in advance, we're looking forward to this."

Submissions should be emailed to: competition@peaceville.co.uk before January 31st. Head over to this location for full terms and conditions. The "Goatlord" and "Ravishing Grimness" re-releases will be available later next year.

Norwegian black metal veterans Darkthrone has announced that they will be re-releasing their fifth album, "Panzerfaust" on October 25th through Peaceville Records. The re-issue will come in a double disc format, containing the album in full, as well as a commentary on the record by drummer Fenriz.

Norwegian black metal duo Darkthrone has launched a mini-site at for their forthcoming album, "Circle the Wagons," which contains exclusive audio samples, album info, and more. The mini-site can be viewed at this location. The new album is due out on vinyl on March 8th, through the Peaceville Records webstore, and regular and special edition CD on April 6th (US).

The track listing for the album is as follows:

Side A ???1. Those Treasures Will Never Befall You ???2. Running for Borders ???3. I am the Graves of the 80s ???4. Stylized Corpse

Side B??5. Circle the Wagons??6. Black Mountain Totem??7. I am the Working Class??8. Eyes Burst at Dawn??9. Bränn Inte Slottet

Norwegian black metal duo Darkthrone is set to release their new album "Circle the Wagons" on vinyl format on March 8th through Peaceville Records, with a regular and special edition CD on April 6th (US). The track listing for the album is as follows:

Side A1. Those Treasures Will Never Befall You2. Running for Borders3. I am the Graves of the 80s4. Stylized Corpse

Side B5. Circle the Wagons6. Black Mountain Totem7. I am the Working Class8. Eyes Burst at Dawn9. Bränn Inte Slottet

Darkthrone will welcome a new decade with a new album to be released on Peaceville Records. "Circle The Wagons" will initially be released on vinyl on March 8th, through the Peaceville Records webstore. The vinyl will also include a link to download a digital version of the album, which will be available when the regular and special edition CD versions of the album are released on April 6th.

"Circle the Wagons" was self-recorded at Necrohell II Studios. Artwork for the album comes once again courtesy of Dennis Dread. The band commented on the new album: “The new metal decade starts with our album. It is a message to the invaders of our metal domain to circle their wagons! With our own brand of heavy metal/speed metal-punk we are a constant ambush on the modern overground metal traitors. Join us in our fight against instant gratification, and let's see who stands when the smoke clears.”

Gibson got an exclusive preview of the new black metal documentary "Until The Light Takes Us." Here's an excerpt of their reactions:

"...the new documentary Until The Light Takes Us tackles church burnings, the occult and, even, murder to craft a captivating film that’s essential for both black metal aficionados as well as viewers who are curious about the scene and would like a well-constructed overview of Norway’s cultural and musical makeup.

"However instead of just focusing on the scandalous details, Until The Light Takes Us hones in on the Norwegian black metal subculture itself and centers around members of Mayhem, Burzum and Darkthrone—and features detailed interviews with members from each of these acts, so you’re able to hear about the history of the scene from the artists who helped pioneer it themselves. Additionally the film addresses why this scene found traction in Norway and captures the darkness and isolation of the country via striking cinematography and visuals."

"...Although the media has chosen to focus on the more sensational and controversial aspects of the movement, Until The Light Takes Us manages to humanize these musicians and put into context exactly what catalyzed the brutal metal riffs and equally brutal actions that transpired during the nineties."